94. Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fourteen
S avannah
I rigged my room with ambient lighting that mimics the sunrise. It’s gradual and gentle and gives me a semblance of normalcy because in space it’s pretty much black every hour of the day.
As my fake sun rises, my brain comes back online and I pay attention to every delicious feeling I’m experiencing. Tarrex’s hot, muscular body hugs me from behind, his arm slung possessively across my waist.
He kisses my nape. It’s just a little kiss. No tongue or anything, but when I check his thought signature, he’s asleep. To have a male who is so crazy about me, he kisses me when he’s not even awake? Wow!
When I was a kid, this is what I dreamed of. I didn’t really have a good working knowledge of sex, but I knew husbands and wives slept together. I wanted that. I wanted kisses and closeness and blended lives.
Back on Earth, I had boyfriends, but never anyone I considered marrying. And then there was Theos. Our connection was there. There was just no chemistry. And now I have this male.
I turn as quietly as possible to face him. Just looking at him makes my chest all warm and liquidy inside. I force myself not to touch him, although my palms itch to skim along his glittering, fire opal skin.
My lips are clenched together in an attempt to keep from kissing him. I don’t want to wake him—I could stare at him for hours. He’s such a strong, brave gladiator. But in his sleep, with his tousled hair and relaxed face, he looks more like an angel than ever.
I watch as he wakes, and love that the first thing he does when he opens his eyes is smile at me.
Do I drool in my sleep, Love? he asks, slashing me a slanted smile.
You’re a very dignified sleeper.
Good to know.
We just smile at each other for a while. I have that smug feeling I assume people in love have felt since time immemorial. Like Tarrex and I invented love and no one could possibly ever experience the depth and breadth of what we’re experiencing. As if we’re intrepid explorers who’ve discovered the most rare and wonderful emotion. I know it’s bullshit and all couples must feel this way, but it’s extraordinary and I can wallow in it if I want.
On your planet, he asks, are there rules that you have to know someone more than eight days before you ask them to be your mate? He flashes me a wry smile. Because if that’s the case, I can wait until tomorrow.
It’s bizarre that part of me absolutely knew this was coming and another part of me is taken by surprise. I cover it all by looking shocked and teasing, On Earth, if a male asks a female before knowing her a year, he’s banished and the couple is separated.
I feel ten tons of guilt when his anguish blasts me, then I hear, You are going to be punished for that! when he realizes I was teasing. “You’ll be punished after you give me an answer.”
For half a second, I consider telling him that on Earth a male needs to get down on one knee and present an expensive ring with a flourish, along with promises of undying love and no cheating. I don’t need that. We’ve saved each other’s lives. Besides, I can climb inside his thoughts. I know the depths of his love.
“I’d love to be your mate, Tarrex.”
I kiss him, and he kisses me back, and before I know it, we’re making love again.
Eventually, we’re back in the exact position we started in with me looking at him with stars in my eyes.
“How is mating done on your planet?” I ask.
“I think we’ve pretty much mastered the basics.” There’s that outrageously handsome slashing smile of his.
I slap his shoulder. “A ceremony? Heartfelt pledges? Dowries ?”
“This is what Earthers do? I’m supposed to give you credits?”
“We could skip that part.”
“You want a ceremony, Savannah? Heartfelt pledges? I could do that.”
“Let’s get to that later, Love. How about food?” I throw King pictures of food, then give him an update on our mating status, showing him images of us staying together in this room, and traveling the galaxy together. I figure Dax can teach me how to make a wooden box with a crown carved into the headboard, so I flash King a picture of that with a soft purple pillow for him to sleep on. I try to communicate that purple is the color of royalty.
“What do you think, big boy?” I ask as I lean over the side of the bed to look at him.
“King?!”
My tone must sound so panicked that Tarrex slips into my head to look out my eyes to see what’s wrong.
King has disappeared. Well, I assume the animal I’m looking at is still King, but his appearance has changed completely. He’s still a large feline, half the size he was, about the size of the largest house cat, but the metallic scales are gone. In their place is shimmering iridescent fur. It’s white with a blue and purple opalescent cast. His eyes, which are looking at me with love and devotion, are now steel blue instead of fiery red.
I extend a tentative finger to touch his nose. It’s soft as velvet.
“Come up here, big boy.” I pat the bed.
I thought I was your big boy, Tarrex gripes.
You’re my big male. There’s a difference.
King leaps onto the bed between us.
“Who’s a big boy?” I croon. “King is a big boy.” I never crooned to the K’tar before. I mean, it’s hard to get all mushy with a walking armory. But King is soft and fluffy and his iridescent coat mimics Tarrex’s iridescent flesh. He’s unbearably beautiful and such a big, wonderful surprise.
“You two look gorgeous together,” I say as I pet the K’tar . My fingers seek out the places the animal likes to be petted. Just like my cat back on Earth, he likes under the neck and behind the ears the best. The rumble of his purr vibrates the bed.
“I guess we aren’t going to need that leather suit,” I say, but no one’s listening. Tarrex and the K’tar are communicating. When they’re done, Tarrex says, “When I was communicating with him in the cells, he showed me images of creatures like this, but I thought they were a different animal, perhaps something he hunted. It’s an amazing species, one of the most well-protected I’ve ever heard of. They’re born like this, but they can double their size and activate the knifelike plating after they reach maturity when necessary to hunt or fight. Of course, that’s all they ever show in captivity. They need the protection.
“The moment you invited him to stay here with us, he felt safe and began to change, although the fancy bed was the clincher.”
I snuggle closer to the feline and rub behind both ears. “Yes. I’ll get to work on that bed right away, big boy.”